Games
March 22, 2008
August 15, 2007
Pastors Ambushed!!!
Our pastors believe in living life together. Last night, the small groups that each of our pastors are involved with gave us a surprise get-a-way.
What did they do, you ask? They CONNIVED with our wives & kids (who lied through their teeth "in Jesus' name"). They AMBUSHED us at staff meeting at 3:30 p.m. and FORCED us to take a limo to Dave & Buster's, eat great food, play video games together, watch a Kansas City T-Bones game from the 5th row behind home plate, and take a limo ride home.
We had a BLAST!!! We cannot thank you guys enough!!! It was such a welcome surprise, a chance to relax with each other, and just unplug and enjoy life together. (Too bad our other 2 team members became unavailable at the last minute. We missed them.)
I also enjoyed watching Ben eek out a win against Jim in the basketball shootout. Yes, yes, I beat them both if you were wondering. :-)
Ben does a great job of telling the full story here.
March 17, 2007
Are Wii Having Fun?
I just got back from popping into one of the more unusual ministries at Grace. It's our Grace LAN Party. (Yes, it's after 2 a.m. I popped in around 1 a.m.)
A LAN is a local area network. Periodically, a group of video gamers from around the area converge on our facility to convert our high school and middle school rooms into an video game combat zone.
You'll find PCs, X-Boxes, Sony Playstations, and even one of the newer Nintendo Wiis. (People can wear themselves out on those things shadow-boxing, pitching a 90 MPH fastball, or playing tennis.)
This ministry is the creative brainchild of a good friend of mine, Gary LaFreniere. (The picture is from the peak of 14,336-foot Mt. La Plata in Colorado.) Gary's passion for Christ, boundless energy, excellent organizational skills, and desire to see people impacted for God's kingdom is infectious.
He is helping our video gaming community to build new relationships in the church, while intentionally seeking to build bridges to people who are disconnected from, and often disinterested with, church in general. (Community events like this are the reason we built our facility in the first place!)
Tonight, he even helped our own Kristy Peterson raise funds for the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society by raffling off a new Nintendo Wii.
Way to go, Gary!
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Currently Reading
John G. Miller: Outstanding!: 47 Ways to Make Your Organization Exceptional
Thom S. Rainer: Simple Church: Returning to God's Process for Making Disciples
Pocket Companion Bible
(Read it daily. Read it prayerfully. Read it reflectively. Read it and be changed for the better.)
Currently Thinking About
Brian Haynes: Shift: What it takes to finally reach families today
Patrick Lencioni: The Five Dysfunctions of a Team: A Leadership Fable (J-B Lencioni Series)
Tom Rath: How Full Is Your Bucket?: Positive Strategies for Work and Life
Alan Nelson: Me to We: A Pastor's Discovery of the Power of Partnership
Recently Read
Jim Collins: Good to Great and the Social Sectors: A Monograph to Accompany Good to Great
Jim Collins: Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't
- Tom Nelson: Ekklesia
Stephen E. Ambrose: Crazy Horse and Custer: The Parallel Lives of Two American Warriors
Dan Story: Engaging the Closed Minded: Presenting Your Faith to the Confirmed Unbeliever
Recommended Reading
J. Sidlow Baxter: BIBLE STUDY -- Baxter's Explore the Book
(A fresh take on each book of the Bible. Helpful study guide and unique outline perspectives.)James M. Freeman: BIBLE STUDY -- Manners & Customs of the Bible
("What in the world is that ancient custom? I don't understand that!" Find out in this book.)Flavius Josephus: BIBLE STUDY -- New Complete Works of Josephus, The
(Helpful historical info from a faithful Jewish historian who was not a believer in Jesus Christ.)James Strong: BIBLE STUDY -- The New Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible: Classic Edition
(A great reference to study words through the Bible. The Greek & Hebrew lexicon makes original language study available to everyone.)R. A. Torrey: BIBLE STUDY -- The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
(A must-have for my Bible study. Great cross-references for comparative study of almost every verse and phrase in the Bible.)Robert T. Boyd: BIBLE STUDY -- World's Bible Handbook
(I bought this back when it was called "Boyd's Bible Handbook." A must have for basic info like title, theme, authorship, etc. on each book of the Bible.)Andy Stanley & Ed Young: CHURCH -- Can We Do That?: Innovative practices that wil change the way you do church
(A great resource that helped me question the status quo of "how church should be done.")Tom Clegg: CHURCH -- Lost in America: How You and Your Church Can Impact the World Next Door
(Another eye-opening book to me when I was a young pastor. The church needs to keep the same message, but continually change our methods to reach people in our culture.)Rick Warren: CHURCH -- The Purpose-Driven Church
(A very helpful resource to me when I was a young pastor. Wait a minute...I'm still a young pastor!)Bill Hybels: CHURCH -- The Volunteer Revolution: Unleashing the Power of Everybody
(I love how Bill sees the potential in everybody and desperately desires to see people's lives change by using their gifts to serve God.)Kerry Patterson: COMMUNICATION -- Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes are High
Brother Lawrence: DEVOTIONAL -- The Practice of the Presence of God
(What does it practically look like to "pray without ceasing?" Learn from this humble cook's prayer journal.)Rick Warren: DEVOTIONAL -- The Purpose-driven Life: What on Earth Am I Here For?
("Life isn't about you." It's about God and eternal things...and living His purposed out on a daily basis. Enough said.)Horatius Bonar: DEVOTIONAL -- Words to Winners of Souls
(Recommended by my friend and evangelist Leo Humphrey. A life-changing book, especially the Scottish ministerial confessional from 1651.)Dave Ramsey: FINANCES -- Financial Peace: Restoring Financial Hope to You and Your Family
(Want to get out of debt? Want to build wealth? What to radically change your financial situation for the Lord? You can't get much more practical than this.)Eric Tyson: FINANCES -- Personal Finance for Dummies
(The first personal finance I purchased years ago. Very helpful, practical advice for everyone. Stuff someone should have taught you growing up, but never did.)Randy Alcorn: FINANCES -- The Treasure Principle: Discovering the Secret of Joyful Giving (LifeChange Books)
(Financial health without a generous heart and lifestyle is a mirage...it appears good from a distance, but it is unfulfilling and will ruin you in the end.)John Foxe: HISTORY -- Foxe's Book of Martyrs
(What happened after the book of Acts? Stories of people martyred for the faith and for making the Bible accessible to people.)J.Oswald Sanders: LEADERSHIP -- Spiritual Leadership (Commitment To Spiritual Growth)
(Being a leader means more than simply applying good principles. It means being led by God and sharing that with others.)John C. Maxwell: LEADERSHIP -- The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership
(Great insight on the leadership philosophies of a great teacher on leadership...John Maxwell.)Willard F. Harley Jr.: MARRIAGE -- His Needs, Her Needs: Building an Affair-Proof Marriage
(Men and women are different...duh! And they have different needs. What are they and how can we provide what our spouse needs?)Gary Chapman: MARRIAGE -- The Five Love Languages: How to Express Heartfelt Commitment to Your Mate
(A helpful resource for all relationships...using the metaphor of language to help communicate love in an undestandable way to everyone around you.)Tedd Tripp: PARENTING -- Shepherding a Child's Heart
(A great reference for parents to make reaching the heart of a child of primary importance in raising children for God.)Tim Smith: PARENTING -- The Danger of Raising Nice Kids: Preparing Our Children to Change Their World
(A guide for parents to avoid the trap of raising their children by focusing on external behaviors, which are of secondary importance, instead of the heart of a man or woman of God.)
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